Canada announced retaliatory tariffs against the U.S. on Tuesday, saying the countermeasures will match U.S. tariffs “dollar for dollar, rate for rate.”
Canadian Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said the new duties range from 15% to 50% and will take effect on Sept. 8. They focus on steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, and electronics.
The announcement comes after President Donald Trump told Canadian leaders to “fall in line” or face consequences “far worse” than the tariffs already in place.
Download the Straight Arrow app today to get the stories that matter free from manipulation, bias or agenda.™
Point phone camera here
Trade talks collapsed Friday, and the U.S. imposed 50% tariffs on about $20 billion worth of Canadian goods the following day. On Monday, Trump threatened another 50% tariff on Canadian vehicles, auto parts and steel.
Canada responds
“When the United States asked too much and offered too little, we chose to stand up for Canadians,” Champagne said Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney accused the Trump administration of wanting to “destroy our major industries.”
“It’s not a surprise for us that the U.S. would take some form of reprisal to our response to their unjustified tariff, which was on top of other unjustified tariffs,” Carney said Monday. “That’s not a surprise. But what message does that send to the workers in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, and Alabama who rely on Canadian demand?”
He went on to say, “An attitude at the negotiation table that Canada is a subsidiary of the United States, the Canadian industry is going to be disadvantaged relative to American industry, that we’re going to set up terms so that over time, Canadian industry is going to face constant headwinds. That’s not something we’re going to accept.”
The fight gets personal
Ontario Premier Doug Ford accused Trump of trying to “bully” Canada, even saying twice on Monday that Trump could “kiss my a–.”
“I can go back and forth with Trump. You know, I’m not going to. I’m just not going to take the bait,” Ford told reporters Monday. “This guy’s a loser. He’s going to be a loser. And simple as that. We’re going to fight with everything we have.”
Earlier in the day, Trump called Ford “the less charismatic, intelligent, and overall unimpressive brother” of late former Toronto mayor Rob Ford in a social media post. He also accused Canada of taking advantage of the U.S.
Ford fired back, “He’s actually tariffing his own people, taxing his own people. And I’m going to make sure I communicate through the U.S. media. I’m going to be reaching out to every single governor, every single senator, and every single congressperson. And when it comes to the midterms, I have a message to the Americans: don’t vote in a person that’s going to kill your jobs.”
That midterm message isn’t random. The trade fight is playing out just months before voters go to the polls, with several competitive Senate races in states that rely heavily on trade with Canada.
Trump keeps up attacks Tuesday
The back-and-forth continued Tuesday, prior to Canada’s announcement, when Trump shared two new posts on Truth Social. In the first, he said the U.S. was “giving serious consideration” to renaming Lake Ontario to “Lake America.”
“We don’t expect to doing much business with Ontario any longer,” Trump wrote.
In another post, Trump responded to Carney’s claim that a trade deal would weaken the French language.
Trump wrote, “I would never interfere with Canadians speaking French! In fact, I have never even thought of doing such a stupid thing. This lie was made up by a weak and ineffective Prime Minister in an attempt to gain political support, which he has totally lost, from the people of Quebec. I love French Canadians!”
Round out your reading
- Former Fetterman staffers create social media account to expose former boss.
- Why Gen Z finally wants Boomer hand-me-downs.
- Want a copy of Pete Hegseth’s driver’s license? It’s for sale on the dark web.
- Smart glasses helped a man see the world. The privacy panic took it away.
- Americans are keeping cars longer, so the auto industry is making it easier to pay for repairs.
